Plate-glass-surfacing apparatus



Nov. 29, 1927. 1,651,224

7 w. OWEN PLATE GLASS SURFAQING APPARATUS Filed June 16', 1923 "5 Sheets-Sheet v /0 'F I E. 1. T

wvs/vrole 5 W QUQW/ Nov. 29, 1927. 1,651,224

W. OWEN PLATE GLASS SURFACING APPARATUS Filed June I6, 1923 s Sheets-Sheet Fuzz, v

Nov. 29, 1927'. 1,651,224

W. OWEN PLATE GLASS SURFACING APPARATUS Filed June 16, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Hmu Hll lliiiiil lll ]v!1!I" lllllllillllll Patented Nov. 29, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE- wrLLIAM owEN, or PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, AssIGNoR TO PI'r'rsBUBGH ILATE GLASS COMPA Y, A CORPORATION or PENNSYLVANIA.

PIIATE-GLASS-SURFACING APPARATUS.

Application filed June 16,

The invention relates to apparatus for surfacing plate glass (grinding and polish,- ing it) in a straightaway operation and particularly to the provision of means for securing access to the runners'for replacement polishers embodying the invention. Fig. 2.

is a partial side' elevation and section taken through one of t-he polishing machines. Figl 3 is a section on the line III-III of F ig. 1. 'Fig. 4 is a plan view showing a modification. Fig. 5 is a transverse section on the line V-Vof Fig. 4. 'And Fig. '6 is a section showing the machine provided with a grindmg runnerQ As indicated in Fig.1, aplurality of.

runner frames 1 are arranged in series along over thetrack 2, and this track carries a series of tables 3 upon the upper surfaces of which the glass to be polished is secured.

The polishing machines are carried by a cement foundation .4 providedwith the up.

wardly extending walls 5 and 6 designed to confine the water and rouge thrown from the runners to the drainage space between the walls, the wall 5 being provided with an upwardly extending splash guard7, preferablv of sheetsteel construction. I

The runner frame preferably comprises an openwork steel casting 8 provided with vertical perforations to receive the runner spindles 9. such runner spindles being freely movable in the frame and carrying at their lower ends the runner blocks 10. These blocks are provided on their lower faces with the usual polishing felts.

The runner frame is carried by the shaft 11 driven from the electric motor 12 through suitable reducing gearing in the casing 13.

The polishing unit consisting of the motor the runner shaft. and the runner are carrie by the arm 14 which is-providedat its outer end with the tubular pprtion 15 in which the runner shaft is journaled. The arm is secured at its other end to he hollow verti- 1923. Serial No. 645,966.

cally movableplunger15. This plunger is provided at, its lower end with a suitable piston 16 and is mounted for vertical movement in the cylinder 17. The cylinder 17 is itself embedded in the concrete base- 4: of the apparatus, thus providing a very rigid. support for the plunger. Fluid is supplied to the lower end of the cylinder through the pipe 18 provided with a suitable valve 19. This provides for the relatively rapid raising of the surfacing unit in case of an emergency or in case it is desired to swing the arm 14 laterally to the side ofthe table for cleaning purposes as'hereinafter described.

, In order to provide for a further adjustment of the runner frame, which is particularly desirable when the'runners employed are grinding runners, the shaft 20 is employed, such shaft being threaded through the piston 16 at its lower end as indicated at 21 and having its extreme lower end recessed and adapted to engage the thrust ball 22 carried by the base plate 23 of the cylinder, such ball being free to turn in its" socket in the base plate. A- stufiing box 24 is provided on the piston to prevent leakage of fluid from the lower to t e upper side thereof.v The upper end of t e shaft 20 is provided with it bevel gear 25 driven from the gear 26 on the shaft 27, such shaft being provided at its end with a chain wheel 28 carrying the chain 29 by means of which'tbe wheel is turned from beneath. The adjustment as above described, and as operated from the chain 29, is employed in order to regulate the pressure of the runners upon the glass, whichpressure may be adjusted to a nicety by means of the mechanism described. This mechanism, however, operateg relatively slowly, so' that the hydraulic plunger lifting'arrangement comes into play when it is desired to lift the runper quicklv from thetable and reposition it *again with a minimum loss of time. It will be observed further that the adjustment as provided by the chain 29 and the mechanism cooperating therewith is not disturbed. by the hydraulic lifting of the runner, so that after the runner has been lifted and cleaned, it may be positioned over the table again without any further adjustment from the chain 29.

Located along the side of the wall 6 is a concrete roadway-39 (Fig. upon which is mounted the car 31 provided with the washing pan 32. When it is desired to wash the felts of one of the iunner'frames 1, it is first raised from the table by means of the plunger 15 and then swung laterally to the side of the table to the position marked A in Fig. 1. After it is moved to this position, the car 31 is moved beneath it and the felts are washed. [This may be accomplished in various ways as by the use of hand scrapers and the application of water jets to the felts, or the felts may be lowered into the pan of water and rotated, suitable scraping means being carried by the bottom of the pan for engaging the faces of the polishing felts. The foregoing also provides for a convenient removal and replacement of the polishing runners after they become worn. it may also be desirable to remove the runners for clean ing in some other location rather than in the pan 32, in which case, new runners could immediately be supplied to the frame while the others were being cleaned. involving a lessening of the time the machine is out of operation. The runners will ordinarily all be cleaned successively, so that only a single machine will be out of operation at one time, The laterally swinging construction is equally applicable Where. the runner is a grinding runner in which case, the laterally swinging 'movement would beutilized for replacement and repair purposes. If desired, all of the supply pipes 18 leading to the various machines may be connected with a suitable source of supply so that all of'the runner frames 1 may be raised at the same time.

Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate another modification in which the construction involved is very similar except that the arm 33 which .carries the runner frame 34 is longer than the arm 1 10f the Fig. 2 construction, and such arm occupies the inclined position illustrated instead of being at right anglesto the line of movement of the cars as 1S tl18- case in the Fig. l construction. The arm 33 is carried by a plunger 15 as in the first type of construction andis raised and lowered by similar means. When it is desired to clean the polishing blocks 35, the arm 33 is swung so that its center line is at B, thus causing the edge of the runner frame with the blocks carried thereby to project out past the side of the table. A car 36 provided with a washing panis mounted to move along the side wall 37 as indicated in Fig. 5 and the polishing felts are cleaned in the pan 38, one at a time, the runner frame being rotated to bring the'runner blocks successively into-po sition over the pan. In both forms of con struction it is neessary to clamp the plunger a frame, a vertically movable fluid operatedplunger mounted therein, a horizontal laterally swinging arm carried by said plunger,

a surfacing unit comprising a motor, runner shaft and runner carried by the arm, means independent of the operating fluid for adjusting the plunger vertically, a track ex tending transversely beneath the runner, and a glass supporting table mounted for movement along the track, the said arm being mounted to swing in an are such that the runner may be positioned either over the track or to one side of such track.

2. In combination in a surfacing machine, a frame, a vertically movable fluid operated plunger mounted therein, a' horizontal laterally swinging arm carried by said plunger, a surfacing unit comprising a motor, runner shaft and runner carried by the arm, a screw for adjusting the plunger vertically, a track extending transversely beneath the runner.'

and a glass supporting table mounted for movement along the track, the said arm being mounted to swing in an arc such that the runner may be positioned either over the track or to one side of such track.

3. In combination in glass surfacing apparatus, a series of glass polishing machines each comprising a-supporting frame, a laterally swinging arm carried by said frame, means whereby the arm may be moved up and down,.and a surfacing unit including a. motor and a runner driven thereby carried by the arm, a track extending beneath the series of machines, a series of glass supporting tables carried by the track, and a cleaning means for the runners located at the side of said track and mounted for movement along the track so that it may be positioned alongside each of the machines in turn for cleaning the runners thereof when they are swung from a position over the tables to a 

